Vodafone Idea to Consider ₹2,075 Crore Fundraise: Board Meeting on April 6

On April 3, 2024, telecom service provider Vodafone Idea Ltd informed in an exchange filing that the company would hold a board meeting on April 6 to consider the issuance of equity or convertible securities on a preferential basis to one or more promoter group entities for a sum up to ₹2,075 crore.

The board of Vodafone Idea had approved raising ₹20,000 crore through equity-linked instruments on February 27, 2024. This proposal got approval from the shareholder on Wednesday, April 3, 2024. 97.65% of public institutions and 98.62% of non-public institutions voted in favour of approving the fundraising exercise.

Back then, the telecom service provider had also mentioned that they were in talks with banks to tie up debt funding, which would follow equity fundraising. Vodafone Idea plans to raise around ₹45,000 crore by combining equity and debt. It plans to use the proceeds to expand its 4G coverage and roll out its 5G network, along with capacity expansion.

On August 14, 2023, Vodafone Idea announced that the promoter group will infuse ₹2,000 crore into the company if needed. During an earnings call in October 2023, the management said that the fund infusion is likely to be completed by the end of the December quarter. However, that did not materialise.

As of March 2024, Vodafone Idea’s promoters hold a 48.91% stake in the company, down from 50.36% in December 2023. Aditya Birla Group companies, such as Hindalco Industries Ltd and Grasim Industries Ltd, which also have a stake in Vodafone Idea, have also seen a marginal decline in their stake compared to the December quarter. Currently, Grasim Industries holds a 6.62% stake compared to 6.82% in December, while Hindalco owns a 1.5% stake from 1.54% earlier.

In the quarter ended December 2023, the company reported a revenue of ₹10,593.80 crore, while it was ₹10,552.90 crore in the quarter ended December 2022.

On April 4, 2024, the Vodafone share price opened at ₹14.00, touching the day’s high at ₹14.10, as of 9:43 AM on the NSE.

About Vodafone Idea Ltd

Vodafone Idea Limited is a Vodafone Group and Aditya Birla Group partnership. The company is one of the leading telecom service providers in India. They offer pan India voice and data services across 2G, 3G and 4G platforms.

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